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Surface all-in-one PC to be unveiled on October 26
We've been hearing rumbles about an all-in-one desktop PC under the Surface brand from Microsoft, and now it looks like it's set in stone for a New York City media event on October 26.
Microsoft's new Surface all-in-one would be an iMac-like desktop PC that will reportedly launch the AIO product with a Surface keyboard and mouse, too. The media event teases "the next chapter in the Windows story", which will also include announcements of two major Windows 10 software updates, as well as some Xbox announcements.
The Verge has jumped onto the story, saying that "the company isn't planning to refresh its Surface Pro 4 or Surface Book devices at the event, and will showcase laptops and devices from OEMs instead".
Continue reading: Surface all-in-one PC to be unveiled on October 26 (full post)
Forza developer says 'don't give up on Xbox One'
Sony is preparing for the launch of its beefier PlayStation 4 Pro console, but that doesn't mean the Xbox One is old and dead now, especially when we have great-looking games like Forza Horizon 3 and Gears of War 4 on the Xbox One.
Well, Forza developer Playground Games and their Creative Director Ralph Fulton, sat down with DailyStar for a chat, where he said: "How much more can you push out of it [The Xbox One]? I would probably just say don't give up on Xbox One, just yet. Developers are always finding new ways to extract more from hardware. ".
He continued: "We're only a couple of years from the Xbox One launch so we're still learning stuff. We're still finding new ways and better ways to do things. It's kinda a point of pride for good developers to always be pushing standards and quality on hardware".
Continue reading: Forza developer says 'don't give up on Xbox One' (full post)
Galaxy Note 7 replacement blows up, man hospitalized
Things are about to escalate for Samsung, with yet another Galaxy Note 7 exploding and hurting someone, with this one being another replacement Note 7 that are meant to be fine.
WKYT reports that on Tuesday morning at 4am, Michael Klering and his wife were woken by a hissing sound coming from within the bedroom. Klering said: "I was scared to death for a minute. The whole room just covered in smoke, smells awful. I look over and my phone is on fire".
Klering said he had the replacement Galaxy Note 7 smartphone for just over a week before it fried, adding: "The phone is supposed to be the replacement, so you would have thought it would be safe. It wasn't plugged in. It wasn't anything, it was just sitting there". Later in the day he said he was feeling sick, so he went to the ER. He said: "I was vomiting black so it was very scary. It was a lot of black stuff and it didn't look right".
Continue reading: Galaxy Note 7 replacement blows up, man hospitalized (full post)
I ain't 'fraid of no 'Ghostbusters' Blu-ray giveaway
To celebrate this week's release of 'Ghostbusters' on Blu-ray and DVD, we have 15 Blu-rays to give away thanks to our friends at Universal Sony Home Entertainment.
Answer the call! Ghostbusters makes its long-awaited return, rebooted with a cast of hilarious new characters. Thirty years after the beloved original franchise took the world by storm, director Paul Feig brings his fresh take to the supernatural comedy, joined by some of the funniest actors working today - Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones, and Chris Hemsworth. This summer, they're here to save the world!
To go into the running to win a prize, simply correctly answer the following question:
Continue reading: I ain't 'fraid of no 'Ghostbusters' Blu-ray giveaway (full post)
Tales of Berseria: Collector's Edition coming Jan 2017
Bandai Namco's: Tales of Berseria is now available to gamers in Japan for PlayStation 3 and 4 consoles. This means that unfortunately the rest of the world won't be seeing the standard game until January 24, 2017 in North America and January 27 in Europe.
Whilst the wait may seem long, it does come with a silver lining. Recently announced online and via the PlayStation Blog, the Tale of Beresia: Collector's Edition, is available to pre-order now and will be released at the same time with the standard game next year. The special edition will obtain additional perks and will set customers back at $149.99 USD. The Collector's Edtion will feature the following:
Players wanting a quick taste of the game before it releases next year can jump on the Japanese PlayStation Store and download the demo. The Tales of Beseria demo includes two different modes allowing players to discover a short segment of the full game, whilst being able to experience battles.
Continue reading: Tales of Berseria: Collector's Edition coming Jan 2017 (full post)
Tesla to unveil 'something unexpected' October 17th
On top of the SolarCity event on October 28th where Elon Musk should unveil a new product, a roof integrated with solar panels, Elon Musk just revealed that there will be a Tesla Motors event on October 17th. Musk posted this information on his Twitter profile, but he didn't go into specifics.
However, Musk said that the Tesla event on October 17th would reveal a product "unexpected by most". Although it isn't clear what Musk intends to show on this event, there are many ideas floating around - from finished Model 3 design to improved Autopilot software.
Continue reading: Tesla to unveil 'something unexpected' October 17th (full post)
EA teases 3 new free games for EA Access, coming soon
The EA Access free game vault is launching three more great titles, with the company recently announcing that Xbox One games Star Wars Battlefront, Mirror's Edge: Catalyst and EA Sports: UFC 2, will be available to download free at the end of this year.
EA Access took to Twitter announcing the new title releases, but unfortunately had a hiccup with the first tweet as the link provided did not work. The company later apologized to customers and re-posted the following:
Whilst no official release date has been given yet, the EA Access link attached in their tweet did confirm that these games will be launched end of 2016.
Continue reading: EA teases 3 new free games for EA Access, coming soon (full post)
Former PvZ devloper creates new Octopus destroying game
Once a PopCap developer of the world famous Plants vs. Zombies game, George Fan, has recently announced the launch of his brand new invention, 'Octogeddon'. The now indie developer is on a mission according to online sources to have entered a game-making competition called Ludum Dare 24.
The specific goal of this competition was to make an entire video game in just 48 hours! The theme was evolution, in which the art, the code, the music and design was done alone in a first draft by Fan himself. Direct from The Verge, Fan states: "For some reason I thought of an octopus". Hence a giant octopus being the main star of the game.
The trailer released above gives gamers a quick inside look as to what may be expected in his new creation. With the added assistance of PvZ lead artist Rich Werner, and Kurt Pfeifer, who programmed PvZ for the Xbox 360, Fan has created a new team to finish off Octogeddon. This game will certainly differ from Plants V Zombies as the goal will be to destroy humanity instead of saving it. The Octopus will bring havoc on cities by using its tentacles, constantly evolving becoming more deadlier the further you progress in the game.
Continue reading: Former PvZ devloper creates new Octopus destroying game (full post)
Good Smile launch famous Resident Evil figure for sale
The Good Smile Company known for making various collectables, has recently launched its new line of Nendoroid figures. Capcom's famous first generation marksman from Resident Evil: Chris Redfield, has now joined the sales list announced for official release in March 2017. Customers interested will be able to purchase the new figurine direct from the Good Smile website.
The online store has released pictures and information regarding Redfield's figurine and will be available for sale in his original game attire, consisting of the standard olive flak jacket, along with various weapons. The Resident Evil character will come equipped with his Samurai Edge handgun and knife all of which can be interchanged for various stances and/or poses with the additional bonus of a self-firing rocket launcher that can also be removed and reattached. As a limited edition bonus, those who pre-order through the Good Smile Online Shop will be given a free red herb accessory and 20th Anniversary stamped display base allowing buyers to customize the figurine even more.
In correlation to the 20th Anniversary of Capcom's Resident Evil game in 2016, Good Smile's latest character release will be available to order between the 6th October 2016 until the 3rd November, 2016. The price of the Nendoroid figure is not obscenely ridiculous but will set customer's back around $50 USD and will be limited to 3 per sale. The marksman available will make for a great collector's anniversary piece.
Continue reading: Good Smile launch famous Resident Evil figure for sale (full post)
Power Rangers trailer drops, and it looks different
If you were bored with your weekend and wanted to see something maybe a little unexpected, then you'll be glad to know we have the official trailer for the upcoming Power Rangers movie to cheer you up.
As you can see, it looks like a Transformers-like movie with a massive injection of teenage drama and angst... but director Dean Israelite explains his ideas behind Lionsgate's adaption of the TV series: "I grew up on Power Rangers in South Africa and what was important to me from the beginning was making a movie about growing up".
He continued: "I wanted to make this a grounded, character driven origin story that was always set to the backdrop of this adventure. Always at the center was making these characters real with real problems that people can find relatable. I wanted to remain true to the spirit of the franchise that I grew up on and loved. And I wanted really hard to reimagine it and reinvent it for a 2017 audience".
Continue reading: Power Rangers trailer drops, and it looks different (full post)
ASUS 100 series motherboards will support Kaby Lake CPUs
Intel will soon introduce their next-generation CPU architecture, and now we know that 100-series motherboards from ASUS will support the upcoming Kaby Lake processors - while the impending release of the 200 series will support them from day one.
ASUS series100 motherboards can be updated with Kaby Lake support through a BIOS update, using either a USB drive in the UEFI, or within Windows. You can get the new BIOS update on the ASUS website.
Here's a list of the ASUS 100-series motherboards that will support Kaby Lake CPUs after the BIOS update:
Continue reading: ASUS 100 series motherboards will support Kaby Lake CPUs (full post)
Overwatch leaks: Sombra design, Halloween brawl teased
Overwatch is one of the most addictive first-person shooters ever, and now Blizzard are set to inject a little more of that addiction into the game through a new character, and a purported new Halloween brawl. A post on the Overwatch subreddit said that the leak originated from a "Russian OW group".
Sombra is the new character ready for Overwatch, and it looks like she isn't just part of Blizzard's alternate reality game that's still going on. Images have been plastered all over the internet in popular places like Reddit, Imgur, Gyazo and more, showing Sombra as "one of the world's best and most notorious hackers". The image seems to be from an internal Blizzard site, so we don't know when and where the photo was taken.
The partial description of Sombra teased that she worked with the Mexican Los Muertos gang, as saw saw in Solider: 76's animated short, but her collaboration with the gang was short-lived "until she attracted too much unwanted attention and had to go underground".
Continue reading: Overwatch leaks: Sombra design, Halloween brawl teased (full post)
Google is spending big money on Pixel marketing
Google really did make quite the impression when it announced its new Pixel smartphones, a first for the company in premium all-Google smartphones with some nice surprises like the near-perfect voice assistant in Google Assistant - oh, and Google claiming Pixel has the best smartphone camera ever.
Well, you're not going to push all of those points along with the fact that Pixel and Pixel XL ship with Android 7.1, with Google putting a massive load of optimizations and tweaks to the Android operating system. Because Google isn't a known manufacturer of hardware products, the company wants to make a splash. Rachel Pasqua from a New York-based advertising firm said: "This is the first time they are in the position of selling themselves to people, as opposed to selling themselves to brands".
Mario Queiroz, Vice President of Product Management for Google said that the company was about to start its major advertising power on Pixel, we didn't get an exact dollar amount. We were teased that Google would be buying ads during Thanksgiving football games, which we all know are very lucrative - thus, very expensive.
Continue reading: Google is spending big money on Pixel marketing (full post)
Google's new Pixel smartphones already sold out
Google has already sold out of its new Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones, with the larger 128GB models of both handsets selling out quickly, followed by the 32GB version.
The Google Store ran out of the 128GB models first, most likely because there's no 64GB option - so people like myself will jump to the larger version, as we have a lack of expandable storage. Google is selling its first premium smartphones in two sizes: 5-inch and 5.5-inch with the Pixel, and Pixel XL respectively.
Pixel pricing:
Continue reading: Google's new Pixel smartphones already sold out (full post)
Fun in zero gravity: This is how astronauts 'kill' time
During the last nearly 16 years, the International Space Station has been a home for many astronauts and cosmonauts. Currently, there are six people aboard the ISS and, like many before them, spend around nine and a half hours a day doing different research. If we exclude the time they spend sleeping, members of the crew have around four hours a day of free time during which they eat, but also entertain themselves.
To maximize the use of their free time, many find interesting ways of entertainment.
One of the most interesting things you can do aboard the Space Station is to "fly". In space there are no terms 'up' and 'down', there is no floor or ceiling.
Continue reading: Fun in zero gravity: This is how astronauts 'kill' time (full post)
Gears of War 4: Ultimate Edition grants early access
Gears of War 4: Ultimate Edition is now available for the Xbox One and Window 10-powered PCs. The latest edition has been making headlines with its advanced admission, granting gamers early access to the game, with a full 4 days of game play prior to the official launch on October 11, meaning that unless you have purchased the Ultimate Edition pack you will have to, unfortunately bide your time and wait it out till the 11th.
The early access edition contains loads of perks, including a season pass that is worth $50. The pass features a Vintage VIP Pack, entry to a developer playlist for multiplayer, and permanent access to 24 DLC maps. The Ultimate Edition will also offer users a 17-pack Starter Airdrop feature that unlocks characters, weapon skins, emblems, equipment, boosts for Horde and Versus multiplayer modes in addition to three bounty cards.
Gears of War 4 featured as an 'Xbox Play Anywhere' title, which lets buyers of the digital copy for Xbox One or PC, be granted early access to the other versions free of charge. This provides Microsoft players with the option to save their progress between platforms, letting them go from Xbox to PC and vice versa without losing any of their game data.
Continue reading: Gears of War 4: Ultimate Edition grants early access (full post)
iPhone 6 Plus explodes, shoots fire from its screen
It seems to be common these days for smartphones to blow up, and it's not just limited to the Samsung Galaxy Note 7, with an iPhone 6 Plus owner in Fresno, California having her iPhone 6 Plus blow up next to her... while she slept.
Yvette Estrada was sleeping when she heard a flash and then flames leaping from her bed, coming from her iPhone 6 Plus which was on charge. She explained: "I heard a sizzling, then we heard the pop and the whole fire was coming out of the screen", adding that her husband put the fire out by throwing the phone into a sink, adding: "He put water on it and told me to call 911".
The fire and heat from the iPhone 6 Plus got so hot that it damaged the nearby dresser, a pair of glasses, and two Apple Watch stands.
Continue reading: iPhone 6 Plus explodes, shoots fire from its screen (full post)
This is how much biggest tech companies earn per second
Tech companies earn lots of money, that's no news. The value of these companies exceeds even the largest oil giants. Earlier this year, Apple announced their last quarter's profit - $18.4 billion, which is the highest amount for a public company ever.
To help us mortals understand these large amounts, Penny Stocks Lab made a great visualization showing how much companies like Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Facebook and many others, earn per second.
Together all the listed companies earn around $2360 a second, or around $141.600 per minute. The largest piece of the cake, about 50%, goes to Apple.
Continue reading: This is how much biggest tech companies earn per second (full post)
Mafia III framerate to be unlocked this weekend
As reported yesterday, Mafia III has launched with a 30 FPS cap on PC, but a fix is on the way. Turns out you won't have long to wait at all, according to a statement released by developer Hangar 13.
"We currently have a patch running here at the studio that includes 30, 60, and unlimited frames-per-second options in the video menu, among other improvements for the PC version of Mafia III," it says. "We're verifying the patch now to ensure everything is working as expected. If everything goes well, we expect the update to go live this weekend. We will be keeping the PC community up-to-date on the status of the patch throughout the weekend and thank you for all the feedback!"
While launching with a mandatory 30 FPS cap is less than desirable, the quick turnaround is nice to see and should mean the debacle is all but forgotten before long.
Continue reading: Mafia III framerate to be unlocked this weekend (full post)
Hangouts demoted in Google Apps package, Duo gets nod
Google recent sent out an e-mail to its Mobile Services partners indicating Hangouts will no longer be required to be bundled with hardware. Rather, video calling app Duo will take its place.
"Duo will replace Hangouts within the suite of core GMS apps, and Hangouts will become GMS Optional for telephony products," it reads. "This change will take effect on December 1, 2016."
What's also interesting is Google's text messaging app Allo isn't getting the nod alongside Duo; for whatever reason, the company is content to not push the text side of their new communication apps in this regard, at least for the time being.
Continue reading: Hangouts demoted in Google Apps package, Duo gets nod (full post)


